false turkey tail ~ 04/06/14 ~ Garland Ranch

false turkey tail

Stereum hirsutum complex

Look how smooth it is on the underside!  No pores!  From the top, it looks very similar to turkey tail with both having strips of fuzz, but the false's sparser fuzz is longer, even hairy looking. However, I tend to notice the false turkey tail's orange tinge from a distance and thinner edge, like a potato chip.  Plus, during the rainy season, I often see witch's butter with false turkey tail. This batch was growing on a fallen oak, which is typical.

I normally don't go around pulling fungi off wood to take pictures of the underside, but this comparison endeavor was for Cindy @ Dipper Ranch.  I have no idea if these comparisons can be made beyond my local CA range.

turkey tail ~ 03/25/14 ~ Lewis Creek

turkey tail
Trametes versicolor

Look at the pores!  From the top, it looks very similar to false turkey tail with both having strips of fuzz, but the "true" turkey tail is more velvety in texture, like fluffy corduroy upholstery.  For me, these lack the characteristic orange tinge of false turkey tail.  Plus, it has a thicker 'shroom appearance at the edges, especially when they're fresh.  This batch was growing on a fallen incense-cedar, which is reportedly rare for this hardwood saprobe.

Again, I normally don't go around pulling fungi off wood to take pictures of the underside, but this comparison endeavor was for Cindy @ Dipper Ranch.  I have no idea if these comparisons can be made beyond my local CA range.

wolf's milk and common grey disco ~ 03/10/14 ~ Midpen Preserve

wolf's milk slime mold

Lycogala epidendrum

It amazes me how so many natural sightings are time sensitive.  Just the week before, Ken mentioned a distinctive slime mold (which is not a fungus btw) called wolf's milk.  Then, Cindy also included some nice pictures in a recent blog post.  Fun name, no?  So, when I found these, I knew exactly what they were.  I've only ever seen the creeping plasmodium of other slime molds before, not the aethalia (aka sporangia stage) like these pink balls are.  I squeezed a couple, and sure enough, pink milk squirted out, reminding me of Pepto-Bismol.  Oft-repeated descriptions of the milk being a thicker consistency of toothpaste was not my experience. These aethalia were probably too young to be thick.  They're like pea-sized pink paintball pellets (apologies for the excessive alliteration). Apparently, our wolf's milk don't know they're only supposed to be out June-November, yet another oft-repeated statement that doesn't match my encounter.

wolf's milk slime mold among common grey disco fungus

Lycogala epidendrum among Mollisia sp. (maybe M. cinerea?)

It wasn't until I got home and looked at my pictures of the wolf's milk that I noticed the tiny grey disc clusters.  I probably should start carrying my reading glasses wherever I go (ugh, one more thing to haul around).  I thought I'd never get an ID on them, but a couple days later during my blog reading, I found Skev's B.L.O.G. had posted Mollisia cinerea from across the pond.  Oooh, a lead.  I'm not sure if what we have in CA is the same found in the UK, especially considering there are several grey-colored Mollisia spp. 

As a side note, there are other similarly looking cup and saucer fungi, but colored sunny yellow, called lemon disco (Bisporella citrina and its smaller sibling B. sulfurina).  It's the tiny world of cool.  Shall I dance?

mycenoid mushroom ~ 02/10/14 ~ Stevens Creek

mycenoid mushroom

Mycena sp. 

more information

Why, hello, tiny friend.  Long time, no see.  Welcome back.  Boy, it sure was nice to find mushrooms again, given our record-breaking dry winter.  This Mycena sp. was growing on a very large, decaying douglas-fir trunk.  I looked at numerous mycenoid pictures online with the off chance I could make a specific ID.  No such luck.  Most are nondescript brownish grey, but some mycenoids are gorgeous yellow, orange, reddish orange, and rose colored.  I doubt I'll ever become proficient with mushrooms, especially considering I have zero desire to look at spore prints and haul out my scope. Plus, I worry about poisonous ones, and not knowing which are which, I have a general hands-off policy.  Just as well, I end up leaving them just as I found them.

bird's nest fungus ~ 02/10/14 ~ Stevens Creek

bird's nest fungus

Crucibulum laeve

It's thanks to Ken @ Nature of a Man who pointed out the bird's nest fungus hiding among the leaf litter.  I've never noticed them before.  No wonder, they're tiny!  The microcosm of the forest floor is amazing.  I'm sure I heard about this fungus somewhere in my biology education due to their active other common name of splash cups, but it wasn't until I started seeing pictures on other nature blogs that it really hit home how incredible these tiny fungi are.  Now that I know what to look for, I hope to find other kinds of bird's nest fungi, of which there are many variations, all with the same common name.

Ken also pointed out a blooming beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta ssp. californica).  I may have looked disinterested, because I didn't want to get frustrated trying to take what I knew would be crappy pictures.  It's pretty dark under the trees.  But, I really was excited to see it and now know to look for the hanging catkins, which are much more noticeable than the tiny red female flowers. Someday, I want to taste a wild hazelnut that I find on the trail.

inky cap ~ 10/11/12 ~ Memorial Park

a type of inky cap

a coprinoid mushroom
(now separated out to Coprinellus, Coprinopsis, Coprinus, and Parasola)

Sometimes it's wonderful not knowing.  Too often these days, I see something and my brain immediately starts compartmentalizing, looking for identifying features, and trying to remember names.  I forget to simply enjoy the elegant beauty of nature without labels and allow my imagination to run wild.  As I knelt in the sand to take these photographs, it struck me how this mushroom's translucence gave it an almost luminescent quality under the stormy skies.  Upon closer inspection the cap reminded me of a hand dyed pleated chiffon couture skirt. Enchanting.

Having no idea which 4 inch tall mushroom I found and after some trial and error, an online image search led me to the Coprinus name.  I can't tell if the substrate is sand or the nearby tree root (shown in both photos above).  I would have liked to include more links in the ID, but I don't have a clue as to sp.  Plus, many sites are either woefully incomplete or appear to exaggerate claims made about these fascinating fungi, which I'm not going to repeat. Michael Kuo's MushroomExpert.Com (linked above) provided the most succinct, detailed, and accurate summary.  Here's a live link to the late Kees Uljé's Coprinus site.  Back in 2004 Tom Volk offered a conversational discussion as to the changing systematics of inky caps.  If anyone knows which sp. I show above, I'd love to hear from you.

yellow houseplant mushroom ~ 04/25/12 ~ at home

yellow houseplant mushroom
Leucocoprinus birnbaumii (aka Lepiota lutea)
for more information click here and here

It's thanks to Amber at Nature Drunk's posts from last year (here and here) that I even knew right away what this fungus is. Last year I got a 6-pack of Lobelia and a bag of potting mix (OSH compost mix). Considering I haven't purchased houseplant material in many years, it's interesting that this pretty yellow fungus is the first I've ever had. It appeared very quickly and is already almost finished. Along with my 4-leaf clover patch, I'm glad to have these store purchase bonuses. By the way, the Lobelia is often planted outside around here, but I had a few extra and added them when I repotted my Dracaena last May. I'm glad the Lobelia is blooming inside.

phellinus ~ 03/18/12 ~ Frog Pond

a polyphore fungus
Phellinus sp.

If I had to make a guess as to species, I'd say either Phellinus igniarius (click for information and photos here and here), which is often found on willow as I believe is shown above, or Phellinus pomaceus. As I was trying to locate a common name for these fungi, I discovered P. igniarius is sometimes called false tinder polyphore. Of course, I had to look up this unusual name. Come to find out there are true tinder fungus and false tinder fungus of various spp., which were primitively used for creating, keeping, and transporting fire. No kidding! Two sites I found with interesting, albeit somewhat contradictory, information about this tinder ability are Tinder Fungi of Illinois and Wildwood Survival.

false turkey tail ~ 07/14/11 ~ Garland Ranch

false turkey tail
Stereum hirsutum

I thought I'd try my hand at ID'ing these older mushrooms. Ha! The other possibility is turkey tail (Trametes versicolor). Even in fresh specimens, it can be very difficult to distinguish between the two unless you look closely at the underside and look for pores. False turkey tails lack pores, and turkey tails have pores. I'm leaning towards a S. hirsutum ID based on the dead oak it's growing on and the obviously hairy surface. T. versicolor cap is described as finely fuzzy or velvety, which I'm not sure how to tell the difference. I may have to revisit this ID in the future when I get more comfortable with mushroom ID.

CA yerba santa ~ 03/20/11 ~ Fort Ord

California yerba santa
Eriodictyon californicum
Boraginaceae (formerly Hydrophyllaceae)

I've hiked past these always wondering what they are, most notably for the black fungus covering most of the leaves. You can see some black leaves in both pictures above. Wikipedia says this fungus is called Heterosporium californicum, but I can't find any online information other than this sooty fungus is common on this plant. This is the first time I've seen these shrubs blooming. It's really hard for me to believe that these are in the same Eriodictyon genus as the woolly yerba santa I spotted at Pinnacles recently. Erg. Once again this plant has changed families from the waterleaf family Hydrophyllaceae to the borage family. These family changes are harder to track than women who change their surnames due to marriage and/or divorce.

fairy fingers ~ 02/20/11 ~ Garland Ranch

fairy fingers on valley oak wood
Clavaria vermicularis on Quercus lobata wood
more information
Fagaceae

It is thanks to fellow bloggers, like John Wall and Jim Johnson, who have helped me with fungal IDs, that I'm now not too afraid to take pics with hopes to properly identify them. Most online pics of this club and coral mushroom are bright white, but then again like the cauliflower mushroom I found at Jacks Peak, I think this fruiting body is a bit older. Oh, as an explanation of how I even know which oak is shown above, this is the branch that Andy and I married under before it broke off. We affectionately call this tree our wedding tree. As this tree dies, we've been amazed at how much life is growing on it. More to come from this tree...

western cauliflower mushroom
Sparassis radicata

Did a quick search this morning and can't find anything that quite looks like this. I'll keep searching. It looks like an airy toasted pastry. Can you ID?

ps - I posted this earlier today (02/16/11) as an unknown meringue-pie-looking fungus. Indeed, it was about the size of a pie, too. Thanks to Jim Johnson's comment below, I was able to track down the ID. Interesting to note, MushroomExpert (linked in the common names) states this is a different species from the eastern cauliflower mushrooms (S. crispa and S. spathulata), which are supposedly primarily found under hardwoods, whereas our true western version is found under pines, as evidenced in my picture. The toasty look in the pic above simply means it's an older fruiting body. Like pie and cauliflower this is an edible mushroom... I think I'm hungry.

jack-o-lantern
Omphalotus olivascens
more related information

posted 01/25/11 - I wince every time I put up a "can you ID?" post. Given the increasingly limited time I'm willing to put into blogging, I tried and failed to make a positive ID, and yet I'm still curious enough to post this to Nature ID to ask others. The past several days, I've looked sporadically for online photographic matches of this fungus and have come up empty handed. In the mean time, I've made a new grouped list specifically for fungi (labels and grouped lists, at the bottom of each post and linked to the right of my home page, are mostly ordered alphabetically). I'd appreciate any genus names or hints if you're familiar with this particular mushroom. From the top view, it reminds me of delicious, golden pancakes with gills underneath. Where's the butter and syrup? Unlike other "bracket" type (i.e., growing from wood) mushrooms, these were not found on a rotting log or stump, but were stretching out from a dirt cliff. Upon closer inspection, it looks like there's an old woody branch sticking out of the dirt - possibly an old tree root?

I was considering writing a ranting monologue about the nature of traditional identification keys for the various biology disciplines and how they're really only useful to the few people who already know what they're looking at. However, I'll skip the wordiness here and leave you with some links to what others have to offer:

Ecology of Commanster's caveat and note on identification keys
Random Truth's flickr fungi of california set
The Fungi of California
Mushroom Hobby
Mushroom Expert

ps 01/26/11 - Thanks to commenters, I've edited and corrected this post and the ID above. I'm a bit embarrassed as I have already ID'd this particular fungus. In my defense, the one above looks very, very different from the jack-o-lanterns I've been visiting almost every day.

sulfur tuft ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

sulfur tuft
Hypholoma fasciculare
more information

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this in another initial post. Thanks to a Flickr ID from John Wall, I was able to ID this.

pss 08/03/12 - I now wonder if this might be honey mushrooms (Armillaria mellea). See this tanbark oak post as to the reason why I suspect this.

false turkey tail ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

false turkey tail with lanky moss/Pacific forest moss/goose neck moss
Stereum hirsutum with Rhytidiadelphus loreus
more information
Hylocomiaceae

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this in another initial post. I'm making a general guess as to the moss species. For a cool Norwegian moss ID site, check out Kristins Lav Og Moser. Also, check out California State University, Northridge's CA bryophytes page.

western grisette ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

western grisette
Amanita pachycolea
more information

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this in another initial post.

witch's butter ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

witch's butter parasitizing false turkey tail
Tremella aurantia parasitizing Stereum hirsutum
for more information click here and here

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this in another initial post and split all the fungi out into separate IDs.

pss 02/09/12 - Oh dear. I see John at Sinbad and I on the Loose has linked to my 2 witch's butter posts, so I feel I should offer a little more information considering I sent him an e-mail IDing his very cool jelly fungi (for more information click here and here). John has much better pictures than mine, btw. For North America (I can't really say for the rest of the world, you know?), I'm only aware of 3 species of witch's butter: Tremella aurantia (as linked above), Tremella mesenterica (confused superficially, but most easily differentiated by different fungal hosts), and Dacrymyces palmatus, which (not witch) Wikipedia says is now named Dacrymyces chrysospermus.

mycenoid mushroom ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

mycenoid mushroom in lanky moss/Pacific forest moss/goose neck moss
Mycena sp. in Rhytidiadelphus loreus
more information
Hylocomiaceae

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this in another initial post. I'm making a general guess as to the moss species. For a cool Norwegian moss ID site, check out Kristins Lav Og Moser. Also, check out California State University, Northridge's CA bryophytes page.

oyster mushroom ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

oyster mushroom
Pleurotus ostreatus
more information

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this as an unknown mushroom, but thanks to John Wall's comment on the initial post, I've corrected the ID above.

red-capped russula ~ 12/21/10 ~ Mt. Madonna

red-capped russula with golden chinquapin bur
Russula sp. with Chrysolepis chrysophylla
more information
Fagaceae

ps 09/03/11 - I originally posted this as a fly agaric, but thanks to John Wall's comment on the initial post, I've corrected the ID above.